Scientists from the University of Florida managed to grow plants on Earth in the lunar soil for the first time in history.. This was reported in a press release published on the NASA website, according to Voice of America..

The first plant from those that ascended on extraterrestrial soil was Talya's resukhovidka - a relative of broccoli and cauliflower.

The plant, known among scientists by its Latin name Arabidopsis, is widely used by biologists for experiments due to its small size and rapid growth.. It is believed that Arabidopsis played a role in the development of plant genetics comparable to the importance of the Drosophila fly or mice as experimental animals in the development of zoogenetics..

Samples taken by NASA astronauts from the lunar surface in 1969 and 1972 (Apollo missions numbered 11, 12 and 17) were used as soil for seedlings..

For each plant, scientists isolated just one gram of lunar regolith by adding water to it, and then seeds and a nutrient solution.. Within two days, they began to germinate, and after six days, biologists began to notice differences between sprouts planted in different soils..

So, for example, the samples collected during the Apollo 11 mission turned out to be the least fertile - then, during the first landing of a man on the moon, astronauts collected soil in the area of \u200b\u200bthe Sea of \u200b\u200bTranquility.

" What's more, according to the NASA director, such a study could be useful for agriculture on Earth by showing how plants can cope with stressful conditions in areas with nutritional deficiency..

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The study was conducted as part of NASA's Apollo Next Generation Sample Analysis Program (ANGSA), a special NASA program to study lunar samples, the results of which may be useful for the Artemis program (Artemis), which aims to return a man to the Moon and manned flight to Mars.